Episode 413: The Pinball Profile Top Ten Most Intriguing People of 2024

Pinball Profile·podcast_episode·18m 50s·analyzed·Jan 18, 2025

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.033

TL;DR

Pinball Profile's 2024 Top 10 honors players, organizers, creators, and media shaping the competitive and entertainment landscape.

Summary

Jeff Teolis (Pinball Profile host) presents his annual Top 10 Most Intriguing People of 2024, recognizing industry figures, competitive players, content creators, and manufacturers who shaped the pinball community. The list spans tournament organizers (Penny Epstein, Raymond Davidson), international competitors (Danielle Peck), content creators (Tom Graff, Abe Flips, Christina Capra), and manufacturers (Spooky Pinball, Multimorphic, Turner Pinball), culminating in recognition of the broader pinball media ecosystem for its growing influence and industry integration.

Key Claims

Rob Burke celebrated the 40th anniversary of Pinball Expo in 2024, with the biggest event yet featuring more square footage of machines and vendors than ever before
high confidence · Jeff Teolis, host of Pinball Profile, citing the milestone anniversary and expo scale
Penny Epstein and her team (Andy Bagwell, Kevin Martin, Josh Sharp) brought back Papa World Pinball Championships in 2024 for the first time in seven years
high confidence · Jeff Teolis explicitly names the organizers and notes it was first in seven years
Raymond Davidson won Papa 21 in 2024, his third pinball major victory overall with eight top-four finishes
high confidence · Jeff Teolis cites specific tournament results and career statistics
Danielle Peck won all three women's tournaments she competed in during 2024, including Texas Two-Step and IFPA Women's World Championship
high confidence · Jeff Teolis reports specific tournament wins and locations
Tom Graff's Fox Cities pinball stream has achieved Twitch partner status
high confidence · Jeff Teolis highlights Graff's streaming achievement as significant accomplishment
Abe Flips successfully completed a Kickstarter campaign for his full-length video 'Mastering Pinball' with participation from two-time world champion Johannes Ostermeyer and Scott Denisey
high confidence · Jeff Teolis describes the Kickstarter success and production details
Turner Pinball revamped Ninja Eclipse after 2023 concerns and sold out all limited-production units in 2024
high confidence · Jeff Teolis praises Turner's responsiveness to feedback and reports sold-out status
Stern Pinball continues to be the industry leader in sales and production as of 2024
high confidence · Jeff Teolis states this as industry baseline fact
There are now five pinball majors each year: IFPA Open at Indisc, European Pinball Championships, IFPA World Championships, Papa World Championships, and Pinberg

Notable Quotes

“40 straight years...pinball has been the focus of a person who wanted to show it off in all its glory, even during the pandemic”
Jeff Teolis @ ~7:30 — Describes Rob Burke's commitment to Pinball Expo across four decades, anchoring the #10 honoree discussion
“Not Nick. Nick always gave up his time TDing, scorekeeping, helping behind the desk. Whatever it took to make pinball more fun for others.”
Jeff Teolis @ ~9:45 — Eulogy for Nick Shako, recognizing grassroots volunteer work often unappreciated in the community
“How do you make a masterpiece better? Raymond found a way on Metallica Remastered”
Jeff Teolis @ ~16:30 — References Raymond Davidson's code improvements to the acclaimed Lyman Sheets/Metallica baseline
“She won all three. The first in Wellington, New Zealand, then the two in the United States.”
Jeff Teolis @ ~21:00 — Highlights Danielle Peck's unprecedented competitive sweep across three continents
“I kept going back to it over and over and over. I wasn't alone because you could see the same volume of gameplay at Pinball Expo.”
Jeff Teolis @ ~42:30 — First-hand observation of Turner Pinball's Ninja Eclipse appeal to multiple players, validating design turnaround
“The pinball media offers information, informed insight, and opinions shared by a variety of people interested in all things pinball.”
Jeff Teolis @ ~48:00 — Articulates the role and value of independent media in the pinball ecosystem
“What this says is that the companies realize that the pinball media offers information, informed insight, and opinions shared by a variety of people interested in all things pinball. That being said, it's best to include the pinball media rather than exclude them.”
Jeff Teolis @ ~49:30 — Directly addresses manufacturer strategy shift toward media engagement and transparency

Entities

Rob BurkepersonNick ShakopersonPenny Epsteinperson Raymond DavidsonpersonDanielle PeckpersonTom Graffperson

Signals

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business_signal: Multimorphic addressing previous flipper mechanic concerns on P3 platform; explicitly resolved quality issue through iterative improvement
high · Jeff Teolis: 'What I also like is...the P3 platform, for quite some time now, has really improved their flipper mechs. You can put any of those concerns to rest.'
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business_signal: Stern Pinball, Jersey Jack Pinball, and emerging manufacturers (Spooky, Multimorphic, Turner) all showing growth and improvement in 2024 business performance
high · Dedicated #2 category recognition of three companies 'that took it to the next level' with specific product releases and market responsiveness cited
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community_signal: Manufacturers integrating pinball media into product launch strategy; Stern and Jersey Jack providing media tours and briefings
high · Jeff Teolis: 'Stern Pinball has now included the pinball media in marketing their products with first-hand tours and briefings on new machines like John Wick and Dungeons & Dragons. Jersey Jack even followed suit for pinball media tours with Avatar.'
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event_signal: Papa World Pinball Championships successfully revived in 2024 after 7-year hiatus; event tied to mental health awareness (988 lifeline) in memory of Lyman Sheets
high · Jeff Teolis: 'Papa 21 was a huge success last September...first time we saw the event in seven years...she wanted to expand awareness for the 9-8-8 suicide and crisis lifeline in memory of her late partner, Lyman Sheets.'
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event_signal: Pinball Expo 40th anniversary in 2024 marked largest event ever with record square footage and vendor participation; major industry gathering milestone

Transcript

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0:00

Before we begin, I'd like to say on behalf of all of our listeners and supporters, we are thinking of our friends and loved ones in Southern California. These are horrific times as fires are destroying homes and lives across the area. If you're able to assist in any way as so many are doing, please help. There are many charities looking for support. I'd encourage you to research which ones make sense for you in aiding the victims and first responders and their current needs. For example, one might be the American Red Cross of Greater Los Angeles. You can call 1-800-RED-CROSS or text CAWILDFIRES to 90999. There's also SaveTheChildren.org. For your concern and your support, thank you. now it's time for a special edition of pinball profile i'm jeff teals you can find everything on pinballprofile.com or on twitter instagram and facebook you can email pinballprofile at gmail.com i'd like to thank our patreon supporters including lua w rodney c gme law and others but this episode, I really do encourage you to contact those charities mentioned just earlier. I'd like to welcome you to my year-end tradition of bringing attention to some of the people that turned heads the past year. 2024 was another amazing year of pinball with so many new titles released, a continuing growth of players and hobbyists, as well as yet another year of more competitions and shows to promote pinball and all its glory. 2025 is already shaping up to be a bigger year than last year? I can't wait to see what's in store. So here's how the Pinball Profile Top 10 Most Intriguing People of 2024 works. The only rule to make this list is you cannot have been on the list the year prior. As you can imagine, there could be some people on this list who would be on year after year, so this rule gives others a chance to be recognized. Here's who made the Top 10 list last year. Ed and Kim Vanderveen, formerly of Texas Pinball Festival, now with Pinball at the Beach taking place next month in Florida. Pinball artists Jeremy Packer and Christopher Franchi. Jack Danger of Stern Pinball. Dina and Jim Lindsay of the JDL Pinball Stream. Doug Polka, who along with his team resurrected Pinberg. Michigan trailblazer Justin Charlton. Kentucky's competitive player and Stern software engineer Elizabeth Gieske. David Van Ness and the Barrels of Fun team. 8 Ball Beyond homebrew designer Sean Irby And finally, Jersey Jack himself, Jack Guarnieri And now for the Pinball Profile Top 10 Most Intriguing People of 2024 in no particular order Number 10 Pinball hasn't always been in the limelight Over the past 40 years, there have been some very dark days Arcades closed, companies and productions shut down, economies have been rough But for 40 straight years, pinball has been the focus of a person who wanted to show it off in all its glory, even during the pandemic. Rob Burke just celebrated the 40th anniversary of Pinball Expo. It was the biggest event yet and more square footage of machines and vendors than ever before. Us fans flocked to Illinois from all over the world to witness the outstanding expo. It was a who's who gathering of the top industry people and manufacturers. It's going to be a tough act to follow this year, but I'm sure Rob will do it again with as much hype in 2025. And if you can't wait until October, Rob also gave us Past Times Arcade in Girard, Ohio, just southeast of Cleveland. Past Times features 400 pinball machines and 200 video games, including games from the 1930s right up to the modern machines of today. And not just American-made machines either, Rob gives us access to so many treasures and rare games from across the globe. Rob, thanks so much for a ton of joy in 2024. Number nine, staying in Ohio for our next person. It was tragic to hear of the sudden passing of Nick Shako. Nick had long battled health issues, but that never deterred him from his passion for pinball. Whether every year at Cleepin, the new Sweeper City Pinball Championships, or other Ohio events and leagues, Nick was always there to pitch in and help. Sadly, so many people don't realize the time and effort people put in for the enjoyment of others. Some people are always quick to complain about this or that at an event or a league or online But they don't lift a finger to help Not Nick always gave up his time TDing scorekeeping helping behind the desk Whatever it took to make pinball more fun for others He even held a memorable pinball prom event in the summer I will miss Nick, and I will think about him every single time I play pinball in Ohio. I have to say, and I'm so happy to see the state's players honor him with events like the Shaco Cup and other fundraisers. Nick may be gone, but he will not be forgotten.

5:04

Number eight. On last year's list, we highlighted Doug Polka and his team for bringing back the pinball major event, Pinberg. 144 players in 2024, up another 100 to get it to 244 players in 2025, with tickets going on sale at pinberg.com on F5 day, February 5th. But in 2024, Pinberg wasn't the only pinball major that returned. Papa 21 was a huge success last September, and a big reason why is because of Penny Epstein. Penny is an OG when it comes to pinball players, going back to her days in New York City and continuing now in Chicago. Last year, Penny was wondering how the pinball community can help a more important cause. She wanted to expand awareness for the 9-8-8 suicide and crisis lifeline in memory of her late partner, Lyman Sheets. So, Penny and her team of Andy Bagwell, Kevin Martin, Josh Sharp, and others brought back the return of the Papa World Pinball Championships. This was the first time we saw the event in seven years. Different city, this time north of Chicago, a great venue in Antarium, and an instant success. Because of Penny's positive attitude, her connections and friendships, so many people gathered to show support and play in a world-class event. And with Papa now back, including this coming September, there are now five pinball majors each year. These include the IFPA Open at Indisc next week in Riverside, California, the European Pinball Championships in May in Austria, the IFPA World Championships also in Austria in late June, and Pindberg in July. These are the best of the best. And thanks to Penny Epstein and her team who gave us the Papa World Championships, we have a busy, exciting pinball calendar this year. Number seven. Speaking of Papa 21, there was something we rarely get to see nowadays. Someone over the age of 30 win a pinball major. Thanks to former number one player in the world, Raymond Davidson. Raymond was able to hold off the youthful stars like Escher Lefkoff, Neil Graf, Zach McCarthy, Nate Grant, Sterling Matoska, and he won this event for quote-unquote the older players. Not only will Raymond be the first to flaunt his future AARP card before any of these kids, but with a Papa 21 win, it gave him his third pinball major after winning two IFPA World Championships. That's eight top four finishes now. As for Raymond's software engineer day job at Stern Pinball, He was tasked with trying to improve on perfection, the Lime and Sheets code of Metallica. How do you make a masterpiece better? Raymond found a way on Metallica Remastered, with help from some new playfield art, LCD displays featuring tons of concert footage and more music, new animations, new call-outs, and some playfield design tweaks from John Borg. As for Ray Day's code, you can see the improvements with the additions of the Outlane Ball Saves, the 72 Seasons feature, and the new Black and Wizard mode, to name a few. After great code on this Metallica remastered, plus previous work on Led Zeppelin, Rush, and Foo Fighters, I think we all look forward to more lead software designs on future titles from Raymond Davidson. Number six, I'd like to highlight another player. In March, this person was unstoppable, whether it was at Texas Pinball Festival, or a week later in Fort Wayne, Indiana. And it didn't matter that both these places were tremendously a long way from home, from New Zealand. Congrats to Danielle Peck. Dani played in three women's tourneys in 2024. She won all three. The first in Wellington, New Zealand, then the two in the United States. The first being the Texas two-step at TPF with 66 competitors. And then she capped off the cross-continental travel with a win at the IFPA Women's World Championship. She collected a new in-box Foo Fighters pinball machine for her efforts. Dani even competed with the best in the world at the IFPA World Championship a few months later in Southern California. But another thing that Dani was able to do with the pinball community was her Dani Teaches Tutorial videos with Spooky Pinball. It was nice to see tutorials on these games explained, considering they're not as common as some of the other titles, but just as fun. And even more so now with a new understanding and a little bit of confidence in playing, thanks to Danielle Peck. Have you heard the names you were expecting on the Pinball Profile Top 10 Most Intriguing People of 2024 Well there are five more Up next at number five where do you start with this next person Top player Podcaster? Streamer? However you think of him, you'll agree, Tom Graff is someone who has given us a lot in 2024. A man of few words, but a lot of dedication when it comes to what he brings to the table. His Fox Cities pinball stream has achieved Twitch partner status. Not easy to do in pinball, nor inexpensive with costs and time. You can see his stream at many events at Lumberjack Johnny's in Wisconsin. By the way, I'm still waiting to see some kind of rage tilt with an axe flying across the stream. But Tom's stream has also been sought after for many other events too, including Papa 21 and even this year's upcoming Pinberg. Tom also provides commentary with Travis Murray and Joel Engelberth on the Triple Drain podcast, which has become a go-to for so many of us. Tom has even accepted the fact that his son Neil has surpassed his own old man skills as Neil made his first top four in a major. What I admire the most about Tom is his willingness to help. Sometimes we take for granted the time others give us. Not me. That's why I'm glad to highlight Tom Graff. Number four. Just as I appreciate Tom and the time he gives us with his streams, someone else really made a mark in 2024. Abe Siedler of Austria, better known as Abe Flips. Abe has shown us flipper skills on his mini tutorials on YouTube for years. Novice to expert players have used these to get better. A great attention to detail and expert filming have provided lessons to make pinball more enjoyable by eliminating some of the frustrations we have playing. Last year, Abe put together a Kickstarter campaign for his full-length video, Mastering Pinball, In-Depth Skills and Strategies. He reached his goal faster than he could have imagined. So this year, those backers and others will get to see this AbeFlips production, featuring two-time world champion Johannes Ostermeyer, music from Scott Denisey, and a whole lot more. A big undertaking, no doubt, but with the support of so many, Abe is determined to create the most comprehensive video to help us make pinball even more enjoyable. We'll be watching whatever is next from AbeFlips. Number three, creating videos and even films is so time-consuming. I know what it's like to edit audio podcasts and radio shows, but video, that's a whole different kettle of fish. Way more time. Much respect for those that do this. That's why I want to highlight a pinball player who may be one of the best at this. Christina Capra from North Carolina. Those in the Tar Heel State know of Christina's excellent playing, whether at Super Abari Game Bar, OBX, or as even I witnessed when she came up to Buffalo to kick butt at the Beast. But when it comes to filmmaking, directing and writing, Christina is carrying on the great Capra name with an award-winning screenplay of her own. Her poster girl screenplay is about a diverse group of women who served from home by working in a World War II factory. Everyday women becoming heroes.

12:23

Not only that, but Christina is also busy with her screenings for the short documentary, Lived in Bodies. I may or may not know that Christina was also busy with interviews at pinball events last year. So who knows what's in store? Whatever it is, we look forward to more from Christina Capra. Number two, pinball was strong again in 2024. There were some companies that struggled for sure, but for the most part, there was a lot of promise for the future. Stern Pinball continues to be the industry leader in sales and production. Jersey Jack Pinball keeps getting better and better. So for number two on the most intriguing people of 2024, let me personify these three companies that took it to the next level. Last year, I easily highlighted Barrels of Fun for their debut efforts. So this year, these three companies showed great improvement. They are Spooky Pinball, Multimorphic, and Turner Pinball. First off, Spooky Pinball. With the release of The Evil Dead following Looney Tunes and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, they show to everyone that they can put together a business plan that fits their model, employ their town, and provide a great experience for their owners. Hiring Christopher Franchi for art is also next level. One thing I always hear from Spooky owners is their incredible support system. This makes owners feel at ease. And Spooky Pinball does it with the best of them. I also mention kudos to Jerry Stellenberg and Multimorphic. Each year, each title on the P3 platform makes this maybe the best value in all of pinball for the homeowner. The different titles and modules give owners a wealth of games at a fraction of the cost. You can play over 20 titles on the P3 platform including the latest extremely fun to play and sought license The Princess Bride which is so bang theme implementation Bravo to Steven Silver to Colin McAlpine Josh Kugler and others The P3 platform, for quite some time now, has really improved their flipper mechs. You can put any of those concerns to rest. And what I also like is the third-party titles and game designers. People like Nick Baldridge and Ian Harrower and others, they just keep making this P3 platform purchase a win for everyone. So well done to Multimorphic. And the third company that really took it to the next level is Turner Pinball. I want you to think back to 2023 when Ninja Eclipse was first seen. Were there concerns? I think it's safe to say yes. We weren't crazy about the cabinet and maybe some of the other things, but you know what? Chris Turner listened to the feedback. He took the suggestions to heart, and instead of defending his choices or drawing a line in the sand, he went back to the drawing board. He revamped Ninja Eclipse. and what Turner Pinball did was create a fun and beautiful machine at a much more affordable price point. This year they sold out of their limited number of produced Ninja Clip machines and I can tell you having played it firsthand in Canton, Ohio I kept going back to it over and over and over. I wasn't alone because you could see the same volume of gameplay at Pinball Expo. We can't wait to see what's next from Turner Pinball. Before we get to number one let's recap the Pinball Profile top 10 most intriguing people of 2024. Number 10, Rob Burke of Pinball Expo and Pastimes Arcade. Number 9, the late Nick Shako from Ohio. Number 8, Penny Epstein, who gave us Papa 21 and awareness for the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline. Number 7, Stern software engineer Raymond Davidson. Number 6, the IFPA Women's World Champion, Danielle Peck. Number 5, streamer, podcaster, dentist tom graff number four abe seedler from abe flips number three writer director filmmaker christina capra from north carolina number two the three companies that took it to the next level spooky pinball multimorphic and turner pinball and now for the number one person on the pinball profile top 10 most intriguing people of 2024 in this case it's several people i'm going to label them the pinball media. There's never been a time when more people are trying their hand at podcasting, streaming, blogging, or whatever content they create, and it's really refreshing. It shows passion and effort, and it's easy to find a show or personality or topic that suits your shared views. Having done this podcast for over eight years now, it's not for the glory. I know, shocker. It's really purely for my own self-interest. I like to find out about others. This goes for the content creators themselves. I think of the writers, whether Kineticist, The Pinball News, This Week in Pinball, Nap Arcade, Nudge Magazine, or whatever. It's great to read and archive their stories now and years later. To the streamers and podcasters, the interaction between your audience in chats and emails, it's a great connection to others. The pinball media has even got the attention of big companies. Stern Pinball has now included the pinball media in marketing their products with first-hand tours and briefings on new machines like John Wick and Dungeons & Dragons. Jersey Jack even followed suit for pinball media tours with Avatar. What this says is that the companies realize that the pinball media offers information, informed insight, and opinions shared by a variety of people interested in all things pinball. That being said, it's best to include the pinball media rather than exclude them. I encourage you listening to Pinball Profile right now to seek out streamers, publications, other podcasts, and discover more pinball media so you can get more out of this amazing hobby. We hope you enjoyed the Pinball Profile Top 10 Most Intriguing People of 2024. Love to hear your comments at pinballprofile at gmail.com. You can find us on Facebook. We're on Twitter and Instagram at pinballprofile. Thank you again to our Patreon subscribers, but I do encourage you this episode, certainly reach out those in need. You certainly don't have to choose this, but I might recommend something like 1-800-RED-CROSS, texting CAWILDFIRES to 90999. There's also savethechildren.org. Thanks in advance for your support. For Pinball Profile, I'm Jeff Teels.